Ross Kemp plays Sticky 13s with pub regulars

Jackie Henson (right) welcomed Ross Kemp to the pub which she runs with her husband Martin, and another couple

Customers at a Nottinghamshire pub were joined by actor Ross Kemp on Thursday night for a card game of Sticky 13s.

Jackie Henson, one of the four proprietors at Boat and Horses pub in Beeston Rylands, said Kemp was "really down to earth" and "very approachable".

She said the EastEnders star's visit was left as a surprise to their customers and acted as a thank you "to the people that do support us week in, week out".

Kemp visited the pub as part of the Rate Your Pint competition, which encouraged regulars to put their local forward for contention.

Ms Henson said a "glowing report" from customer Dan Mason (left) was one of the reasons that the pub won a visit from Kemp

Ms Henson said one of the reasons the pub won the competition was the submission of customer Dan Mason.

She said: "His Rate Your Pint entry was amazing, apparently.

"So we sat Ross next to Dan to play Sticky 13s."

She said Kemp, best known for playing Grant Mitchell in EastEnders, had never played Sticky 13s before, which is a game similar to bingo but with a pack of cards.

Ms Henson added: "When you call the Ace of Spades, the whole pub erupts into the Ace of Spades, and Ross is joining in with all of that."

'It was brilliant'

Despite being "mobbed by the locals", Ms Henson said Kemp was "very tolerant" of people in the pub asking for a photo with him.

Ms Henson said she wanted the visit "to be for our locals", so it was advertised as a one-off Sticky 13s evening to thank people for their support over Christmas, and they put £50 in the prize pot.

She added: "It's that gloomy month of January.

"Everybody's a bit deflated after Christmas, and it was brilliant. It was a really good night.

"Now, whether we'll ever get him back again, I don't know, but they loved it, and it was good for all of our customers."